International Folktale Characters,

INTERNATIONAL FOLKTALE CHARACTER: FINN MCCOOL

July 8, 2014

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photo credit: Mattman4698, Brendan Cullen, both @ flickr.com Name: Finn McCool (or Fionn mac Cumhaill) Age: Roughly 1,414 years – but a good mythological cycle never reveals its real age. Appearance: Handsome, with very light colouring. Also a giant? Maybe. Definitely a big, powerful guy with a big, powerful beard. Oooh, I do love a guy with a beard! Is he in some kind of ancient alt-folk band? Does he wear plaid shirts and listen to Mumford and Sons? You’ve got it all wrong. Finn............. CONTINUE READING

Language Lizard Announcements,

IT’S TIME TO ANNOUNCE OUR GIVEAWAY WINNERS

June 19, 2014

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 photo credit: lakennlinnea @ flickr.com Thank you all for participating in our SMILE giveaway for a free copy of Augustus and His Smile. Congratulations to our winners – Karen L. from Indiana (Haitian Creole edition), Connie N. from Washington (Spanish edition), and Eman B. from North Carolina  (Arabic edition). Don’t miss our next giveaway… sign up for our newsletter at http://www.languagelizard.com/newslettersignup.htm.  And continue to check our Facebook page and Twitter postings!   .......... CONTINUE READING

At Home, Families,

READING UNDER THE TREES

June 4, 2014

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by guest blogger Karen Nemeth EdM  When I was a young girl I told everyone that one day I would have a house with a weeping willow tree in the yard because I loved to hide in the shelter of the cascading leaves and read books.  That is what I loved so much about reading – that I could do it anywhere, anytime.  I also loved to read at night in a tent with a flashlight or early in the morning when the............. CONTINUE READING

At Home, Dual Language, Families, Libraries,

YOUR BILINGUAL STAYCATION STARTS HERE!

May 27, 2014

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This summer, are you looking for a vacation that’s easy, cheap, environmentally friendly, relaxing, educational and fun no matter what the weather?  Give up the hours you’d normally spend trawling the internet looking for the perfect spot and instead opt for a Bilingual Staycation!  You’ll be able to spend these sweltering months bonding with your child and learning more than you ever would poolside at a resort. To take a staycation, you simply need to stay put and enjoy your hometown and its............. CONTINUE READING

Book Reviews, Dual Language, ELLs / DLLs, Giveaways, Libraries, Schools,

SMILE! YOU’RE ABOUT TO GET A FREE BOOK!

May 20, 2014

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With spring finally here, it’s hard not to SMILE! And did you know that NATIONAL SMILE POWER DAY is just around the corner on June 15th, 2014? (Yes, this is also Father’s Day… another reason to smile!) With this in mind, we’ve decided to GIVE AWAY our favorite bilingual book about SMILING: Augustus and His Smile. This award-winning book – available in over 20 languages* – teaches children that happiness can be found all around and within us (see review............. CONTINUE READING

At Home, Families,

HOW TO HELP YOUR TEENS LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE

May 6, 2014

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-by guest blogger Tim Johnson Learning a second language can have a lot of advantages, especially in our incredibly interconnected modern world.  It provides opportunities to share ideas and opinions in business or simply to make new friends.  However, learning a new language can be very challenging and many late-life language learners may be at a disadvantage.   To give our children the best opportunities later in life, parents are encouraged to provide them with knowledge of a second language at an early age.............. CONTINUE READING

Dual Language, ELLs / DLLs, International Folktale Characters, Libraries, Schools,

INTERNATIONAL FOLKTALE CHARACTER: MAMY WATA

April 16, 2014

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    Woohoo!  It’s almost summer!  Let’s go SWIMMING! Did you bring your bathing suit?  Oh yeah…um…I totally left it at home…plus you know, I ate less than half an hour ago…I don’t want to get a cramp… You’re looking decidedly shifty. What’s the real reason you don’t want to go swimming?  Ok, to be honest, it’s because I’ve been doing some reading up on popular African deity Mamy Wata. Who?  Mamy Wata, which means “Mother Water”.  She’s a water entity worshipped by many people in............. CONTINUE READING

Dual Language, ELLs / DLLs,

TIME TO CELEBRATE YOUR DUAL LANGUAGE LEARNERS!

March 12, 2014

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It’s snowing – again.  Inside your classroom, the three and four year olds you teach are restless and frustrated.  Their little noses are pressed up against the windows where paper snowflakes, which looked magical in December, now wilt miserably.  “So much snow,” says a little girl who is growing up learning both English and Korean, her home language.  The boy next to her, whose parents speak only Spanish, nods and says, “I want to play outside.” The children have been working (and............. CONTINUE READING

At Home, Classroom, Dual Language, ELLs / DLLs, Families, Libraries, Schools,

OUR PERSONAL SHOPPERS ARE AT YOUR SERVICE!

March 5, 2014

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We are pleased to announce that Language Lizard is now offering a complimentary Personal Shopper Service to simplify ordering of bilingual books, multilingual posters, and teacher resources. You gave us your feedback, and we heard you!  Many of you are trying to support language learners but don’t have the time to look through our site to select specific titles. Now you can make your life easier by working with one of our Personal Shoppers, who will listen to your requirements, find the right products,............. CONTINUE READING

Holidays,

NEW YEAR CELEBRATIONS AROUND THE WORLD

January 21, 2014

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Looking for a way to beat the winter blahs? Sweep away the cobwebs (literally!) and join in with celebrations for the traditional Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival, on January 31st this year! A colorful, festive extravaganza, this holiday is celebrated with the cleaning out of the old to make way for the new, money given in auspiciously-colored red envelopes, and a dynamic spectacular that most everyone will recognize: the lion dance. The children you know will love learning about the fun associated with............. CONTINUE READING